Do Minnesota Residents Get In-State Tuition in South Dakota? (Graduate, 2026)
Yes — Minnesota and South Dakota run Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity, so Minnesota residents can pay the South Dakota in-state graduate rate of about $10,300 a year instead of the $13,000 non-resident rate at USD Graduate School. Check the current terms before you apply.
- You would pay
- $10,300/yr
- Resident pays
- $10,300/yr
- Non-resident rate
- $13,000/yr
- Saved over 2 yrs
- $5,400
Tuition and mandatory fees only, compiled from published rates and rounded. Excludes housing, books and course differentials. Eligibility is decided by the institution, not by this page.
Open this pair in the checker to switch level, compare other states, or copy a link to the result.
Minnesota and South Dakota have a standing agreement, which puts this pair in a small minority. Most state pairs have nothing between them except the non-resident rate. Here, Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity brings graduate tuition at USD Graduate School to roughly $10,300 instead of $13,000.
Seen from Minnesota, this is one option among 50. 7 other states offer Minnesota residents a reduced graduate rate, the lowest being Wisconsin at about $12,400, against $20,000 for in-state study at University of Minnesota Graduate School.
Confirm the specific campus takes part. State-level membership is necessary and not sufficient, and several flagship universities either exclude their most competitive majors or sit out entirely.
Every route from Minnesota to South Dakota
| Route | What it gives you | Per year | Saving | Guaranteed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity | Minnesota maintains standing reciprocity agreements with both Dakotas. Residents of either side pay a reciprocity rate at the other's public institutions, applied for through the Minnesota Office of Higher Education or the partner state's system office. | $10,300 | $2,700 | Yes, if eligible |
Where Minnesota residents pay less
Staying home, a Minnesota resident pays $20,000 a year for in-state graduate tuition at University of Minnesota Graduate School. The cheapest South Dakota option for you is $10,300 at USD Graduate School, which is $9,700 a year less than Minnesota's own in-state rate at University of Minnesota Graduate School.
Minnesota belongs to Midwest Student Exchange Program (MSEP) at graduate level, so 8 of 50 states offer Minnesota graduate students a reduced rate, and South Dakota is one of them.
| State | Route | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Minnesota to Wisconsin | Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity · UW-Madison Graduate School | $12,400 |
| Minnesota to North Dakota | Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity · UND School of Graduate Studies | $12,700 |
| Minnesota to Indiana | Midwest Student Exchange Program · Indiana University Graduate School | $15,450 |
| Minnesota to Nebraska | Midwest Student Exchange Program · University of Nebraska-Lincoln Graduate Studies | $15,450 |
| Minnesota to Missouri | Midwest Student Exchange Program · University of Missouri Graduate School | $16,950 |
Minnesota's neighboring states, compared
What a Minnesota resident pays for graduate tuition in each state that borders Minnesota, cheapest first:
- South Dakota$10,300/yr · Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity
- Wisconsin$12,400/yr · Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity
- North Dakota$12,700/yr · Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity
- Iowa$31,600/yr · non-resident
Compare all 50 states from Minnesota in the checker. Each figure is one reference campus per state, not a state average.
South Dakota residency, in brief
South Dakota grants in-state tuition after 12 months of domicile before the term begins (SDBOR Policy 3:5), and a financially dependent student takes the parents' domicile. Moving to South Dakota to enroll does not by itself start the clock.
South Dakota residency requirements in full · how long every state requires
Step by step
- Read the current terms of Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity — bilateral agreements are renegotiated and can narrow to specific campuses or majors between academic years.
- Apply through the channel the agreement specifies; several are administered by the home state's higher-education agency, not by the receiving campus.
- Provide proof of Minnesota residency in the form the agreement requires.
- If you fall outside the agreement's scope, fall back to the residency route: 12 months of South Dakota domicile.
Official links
Related
Asked and answered
›Do Minnesota residents get in-state tuition in South Dakota?
Effectively yes, through Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity, but it is not residency. You pay the in-state rate of about $10,300 while remaining a Minnesota resident for every other purpose, and the benefit ends if you leave the approved program.
›How long does it take to get in-state tuition in South Dakota?
South Dakota requires 12 months of domicile before the term begins (SDBOR Policy 3:5), and a financially dependent student takes the parents' domicile.
›How much would graduate study in South Dakota actually cost a Minnesota resident?
About $10,300 a year in tuition and mandatory fees under Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity, against $13,000 at the published non-resident rate and $10,300 for a South Dakota resident. Over 2 years that is roughly $5,400 saved. Figures are compiled 2025–26 published rates and exclude housing, books and course-specific differentials.
›Where can Minnesota residents get reduced graduate tuition?
In 8 states at graduate level. Outside South Dakota, the lowest are Wisconsin ($12,400), North Dakota ($12,700), Indiana ($15,450). Each figure is one reference campus, and awards are made campus by campus.
›Is studying in South Dakota cheaper than staying in Minnesota?
On tuition, yes. The cheapest South Dakota option for a Minnesota resident is $10,300 a year, which is $9,700 below Minnesota's own in-state rate of $20,000 at University of Minnesota Graduate School. Housing and travel are not included.
Sources
Every eligibility rule on this page is checked against the operating compact commission or the state's own residency authority. Last verified 2026-09-27.
Tuition figures on this page are compiled 2025–26 published rates (basis: published compiled), rounded to the nearest $100 and refreshed each June. Eligibility rules are checked against the cited compact commission or residency authority.
- South Dakota Board of Regents — residency for tuition purposes ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
- USD Graduate School — tuition and fees ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
- University of Minnesota Graduate School — tuition and fees ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
How this page was made
Compiled and checked by Billy Reiner, editor of In-State Check. Last verified 2026-09-27.
- Compiled from published rate pages
- The in-state and non-resident figures are tuition and mandatory fees for one full-time year, read from USD Graduate School’s own 2025–26 rate page and rounded to the nearest $100. Housing, books, travel and course-specific differentials are not included in them.
- Checked against the administering body
- Compact membership at this level was checked against the commission that runs the program (WICHE, MHEC). The residency test — the durational requirement, the domicile evidence and the dependent-student rule — was checked against South Dakota Board of Regents, SDBOR Policy 3:5. Nothing here is taken from another comparison site.
Not advice. In-State Check is independent of every college, compact and state agency named here. Residency classification and award decisions are made by the institution you apply to. Found an error? Send the page URL and the source that contradicts it to [email protected], and the page is corrected and re-dated. Full methodology.